1. Field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to containers generally and, more particularly, but not by way of limitation, to a novel handle retainer for a container.
2. Background Art.
Containers are widely used to house or carry a variety of items. Frequently, such containers have handles that facilitate the carrying of the containers. While convenient for moving and carrying the containers, the handles often protrude from the container. The latter feature can be problematic in that the handles consume space and also can become entangled with luggage handling equipment, for example. The space consuming problem can be aggravated in the case where the handles are fairly rigidly attached to the containers such that the handles are normally orthogonal, or nearly so, to the containers.
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide a handle retainer for a container that secures the handle closely adjacent the container when the handle is not in use.
It is a further object of the invention to provide such a handle retainer that can conveniently be placed in a retained position.
It is an additional object of the invention to provide such a handle retainer that can be economically manufactured using conventional techniques.
It is another object of the invention to provide such a handle retainer that can be molded with the elements of the container when the container is of molded construction.
Other objects of the present invention, as well as particular features, elements, and advantages thereof, will be elucidated in, or be apparent from, the following description and the accompanying drawing figures.
The present invention achieves the above objects, among others, by providing, in a preferred embodiment, a handle retainer for a container having a handle extending from a surface of said container when said handle is in a carrying position, said handle retainer comprising: a boss disposed on said container; and said boss and a distal end of said handle having complementarily sloped surfaces such that, when said complementarily sloped surfaces are co-engaged, said handle will be retained closely adjacent said surface in a non-carrying position.